Long Lost
by KyberWolf
Summary: After the devastation of Atollon, but before joining the Alliance at Yavin IV, the rebels are on the run through the galaxy. Out of fuel and out of options, the fleet may find respite on one small moon. But that's not all; the Force hints that something- or someone very important is on that moon. Kanan does not know what to think of it... or does he? My first fanfic, please review!
1. Chapter 1

Author Notes: This is my first fanfic! Takes place between seasons 3 and 4. I'm trying too keep it as canon compliant as possible, so if I mess something up please tell me. Enjoy!

Ever since their defeat on Atollon had forced them on the run again, the surviving rebels did their best to rebuild, while avoiding another devastating attack. The scraps of Phoenix Squadron and General Dodonna's Massassi group had fled to Yavin IV at first, but decided it would be safer for the Alliance if they stayed on the move for a while. There was still a chance of being tracked. After losing so many ships, including their flagship _Phoenix Home,_ the rebellion simply could not take the risk. As a matter of fact, the Empire had managed to sneak up on them a couple times. Thrawn was disturbingly good at predicting which planets they would try to collect fuel and supplies on.

Luckily it had been relatively smooth going for the last month and a half. Bail Organa and others continued to donate ships whenever they could afford it. They survived by raiding imperial facilities and stealing imperial ships.

 _Just like the good old days_. That's what Kanan Jarrus thought as he attempted to navigate the rebels' latest and only real achievement since Atollon. About a month ago they had managed to hijack and make off with a brand-new Imperial carrier. Without a planetary base, they desperately needed a new one to replace _Phoenix Home_. Now most of the supplies they got a hold of, as well as every starfighter that would fit, were immediately crammed into the massive hangar.

Unfortunately, that created an absolutely nightmarish maze for Kanan. Even Force-sight couldn't save him from tripping over every cable, hose and crate he came across. He'd removed his mask to let some air on his face (stale as it was), hoping that would help him be more open to his surroundings, but the constant and bewildering noise that filled the hangar made it nearly impossible to concentrate on sensing and avoiding obstacles. Seven times now he had to stop and reorient himself as he would change directions to get around some barricade of crates and then be turned around.

He was trying to find his way to the command center to give a report to Dodonna and the other Massassi leaders on the Spectres' recent supply mission. For although Hera Syndulla had long ago earned her place as a rebel captain of their unit, she now deferred to the Massassi leaders as Pheonix Squadron no longer existed. There were simply too few left to be considered an individual cell after the devastation of Atollon. For the time being, Hera and the crew were back to minor missions and supply runs. And new protocol required a detailed report on every... single... one.

Hera and the rest of the crew were currently occupied with tasks that required eyesight. So Kanan was stuck with mission report. Of course, said command center had to be as far away as possible from where the _Ghost_ was docked. He could sense exactly where it was, but getting there was proving difficult. He growled as his shin clipped the corner of... something.

 _Why are we even bothering_ _to_ _report_ _a_ _simple_ _milk_ _run?_ Hera could've just buzzed their success into the comm and that would be that. Back in the good old days, even that wouldn't be necessary. _But nooo,_ he drawled the word in his mind. _Now we_ _have to follow protocol!_ Even after almost four years as part of Pheonix Squadron and the larger rebellion, Kanan was constantly irked by the rules, and ranks, and dos, and do-nots. He was a rebel of the rebels.

 _Quit complaining,_ he told himself, reining in his temper. An off-duty pilot offered to guide him but he declined. He needed to build up his Force-sense now, or he would always be reduced to asking for help in situations like this.

Kanan figured that he was about halfway there, and at the end of temper, when he felt a familiar presence in the Force heading his way. Seconds later, his apprentice greeted him cheerfully.

"Hey Kanan! Did you give the report already?"

"I haven't even got there yet."

"Get lost in this junkyard?"

"Yep."

"I got ya."

Ezra put a hand on his master's shoulder and turned him around, then guided him back the way he'd come. Kanan still wasn't wearing his mask and he turned his milky gaze on where Ezra's head should be.

"Uh, I still need to report." He said.

"Forget it. I know you hate that stuff, and I've finished repairing the Phantom II's navicomputer so I'll cover it. Besides," he continued with a friendly smirk, "you're only a quarter of the way there."

"What?!" Kanan was astonished.

"Hehe, yeah it's a mine field in here. No one blames you. It's kinda funny though how you're still a badass on the battlefield and on missions, but you can't make seventy feet through the hangar."

"It's just so crowded in here that everything's Force signature blurs together. Not to mention it's too loud to concentrate...Wait. Were you all watching me suffer?"

"Maybe..."

"Probably took bets too."

"Yeah. I owe Zeb five credits for saying you'd make it."

Kanan shoved Ezra in mock-irritation. His blindness was no longer a taboo subject, in fact it was often subject to friendly joke nowadays. Everyone including himself was used it and they had all learned to work with it. For so long after Malachor, Kanan had felt useless and an outcast. And trapped... in a small... black... box. His depression had strained his relationship with the crew. Especially Ezra. But when The Bendu taught him to see without sight, the world was opened to him again, and since then it was no longer any hindrance. Except now.

"If it's any comfort, Hera caught us, and now we have to scrub the cannon barrels."

"Heh, at least someone still loves me."

"We all do. At least we all owe you too much."

"That's for sure. You know I'm keeping a list." Kanan paused. He could now sense a clear path to the _Ghost_. Zeb and Rex scrubbing doggedly at the guns as Ezra had promised. Hera occupying herself in the engine room. Chopper preparing some malicious prank for whoever next walked into the fresher. _Home_.

"I thought we agreed on eternally even."

Kanan padded his apprentice on the shoulder. "I can make it back from here."

"Ok, see ya."

He turned and bolted for the command center.

Kanan walked up the extended ramp and made his way through the familiar hallways he knew would be free of obstacles. Hera was still somewhere in the belly of the ship and would not likely be coming out any time soon, so he went to crash in his bunk. Usually he would meditate at this time of day, but he just didn't feel like it for some reason. Soon he was asleep, and for the first time in a long time, he had a nightmare.

At first it was the usual. Caleb Dume. Surrounded by battle droids. Blaster bolts searing his shoulder and torso. Stance killed in front of him... Back to Kaller. Order 66. Master Depa Billaba screams at him, telling him to run. His master falls to the ground dead, a smoking blaster wound in her back. Months of being hunted and alone.

Then the inquisitor. Interrogation. Bright crackling tendrils of electricity searing his entire body.

Malachor. Maul. His vicious red saber the last thing Kanan saw before it slashed across his face. Pain and darkness.

Then something he'd never seen before... A small, unfamiliar moon standing out against a much larger planet. Desert and craggy rock formations. A rundown but still impressive city carved into the top of a large mesa. _Was_ it familiar? He, Ezra and others he couldn't see standing in the desert. A man and a woman smiling... at him? It felt more like a memory. Voices calling him. "Kanan!" Getting louder. " _Kanan!_ " Shaking. "KANAN WAKE UP!"

He shot awake, panting and throwing a punch into empty air. The images were replaced with blackness. He immediately sensed Hera next to him. She squeezed his shoulder in concern, ignoring the fact that he'd nearly hit her.

"You were having a nightmare." He felt her gaze on him.

"Yeah. Thought those were gone for good." He tried to focus on her; the smell of soot and engine oil clinging to her flight suit. Her warm, gentle voice. The last part of the dream began to come back to him. He knew immediately that he'd just had a Force vision. The first one in long time. Who knew what it meant. But as always, it rattled him. He decided not to mention it to Hera.

"You had a vision didn't you?" The Twi'lek asked gently. Of course. She knew him too well.

"Yeah."

"Are you gonna tell me about it?"

"Maybe later."

"Okay."

He smiled at her gratefully. She never pushed him. But then she stood up, and Kanan realized that he wasn't her only concern at the moment.

"Kanan, we have a problem."


	2. Chapter 2

Hera quickly explained the situation as Kanan dragged his shirt back on. He had suspected they were low on fuel. An illegal fleet bouncing around the galaxy required a lot and had a hard time getting it. The last few milk runs had been primarily for power cells but not even the _Ghost_ was having much luck. The mission Kanan was supposed to report on was just for general supplies, anything they could get their hands on. Mostly because they'd given up on tracking down fuel. But according to Hera, they were getting desperate.

"We need to be in the briefing room in five minutes." She handed him his mask. "I'll help you get there." She headed for the door. He stayed seated on the bunk. Something was pricking at the back of his skull, a little Force bird trying to get his attention. The Force had always loved being as inconvenient for him as possible. Hera turned back, eyeing him.

"Are you alright, Kanan?"

"Go on ahead. I'll catch up."

She hesitated.

"I'm not completely helpless."

"Fine, just try to hurry." Hera's retreating footfalls echoed for a few moments, then silenced. The fuel situation must have been bad if she was in this much of a hustle.

Glad he was alone, Kanan opened himself to the Force, willing it to hurry up and show him what it wanted before he was late. It hummed around him, invisible and powerful. Welcoming as always. A few snapshots from his dream popped up. Briefly, he glimpsed the man and woman. Their faces shadowed. He couldn't tell what they were doing, if anything, but a strange feeling accompanied the scene. Something he had not felt in... ever? Then it was lost to random, meaningless images. And then that moon again. In the vision, Kanan had seen the surface of it, desert and mesas. The crowded fortress-city. Now it floated as a grayish, brownish, reddish orb alongside its parent planet. A few seconds later, the vision ceased, returning abruptly to Kanan's constant, starless night. The Force sulked away.

"Weird and useless as usual" he muttered as he began to run a hand through his hair. The hair tie had given up. That's what he wanted to believe. After Malachor, the last thing Kanan wanted was another solo Jedi mission. But two things in particular pressed on his conscience: The man and woman were important... in a way that was very unfamiliar to Kanan... different. He had no idea. And that moon radiated with the Force. He would sort it out later. Hastily shoving his russet-colored hair into its usual pony tail, he hoped not to crash into anything as he headed for the meeting.

/

After reporting for Kanan, Ezra had headed back to the _Ghost_ to help scrub the gun barrels with Rex and Zeb. Twenty minutes of that and he'd made a trip to the fresher, only to discover Chopper's trap. Somehow the psychotic excuse for an astromech had reprogrammed the mechanic sink to spew water into the faces of its victims. Ezra grumbled curses as he wiped his face with a towel, ignoring the droid's maniacal laughter which emanated from some remote corner of the craft.

All of that had thoroughly soured his mood, but that was before the crazy Force vision: Ezra was standing in the desert again, but the Force told him that this was not Tatooine. The air was not hot and stifling, in fact it was rather chilly, and in the distance he could see what looked like a sizable civilization. The scene changed abruptly, and Ezra saw the flash of blaster bolts deflecting against his green lightsaber. Behind him someone yelled. He turned to see a man running toward him and frantically pointing at something to the left. But Ezra couldn't turn to see what. He couldn't break his gaze away from the man's eyes. He'd seen those eyes before.

Ezra was lying on the floor of the fresher, halfway up against the closed door and panting. _The kriff?_... Trying to remember everything he'd just seen, he picked himself up slowly. It had been awhile since he'd last had a major vision. Where had he seen those eyes before?

Before he could contemplate it further, the commlink on his belt beeped, nearly causing the disheveled Jedi to leap out of his skin.

"Spectre Six, please report to General Dodona in the briefing room immediately," came the terse instructions. Mumbling assent into the device, he stumbled out of the fresher and down the ramp of the ship.

Ezra tried to mentally file away the vision for later analysis, but the images kept popping back up to nag at him as he made his way to the command center for the second time. He had absolutely no idea what moon it was with the cold desert and jagged mountains. The man had to be someone important. Ezra didn't recognize him. But as soon as that revelation was in his head, the Force poked him like 'dummy, I can't believe you don't know this guy!' Should he recognize him? Ezra couldn't even form a clear picture of him at this point.

The part that really worried him was what the man was doing, desperately trying to get his attention as his lightsaber vibrated with the impact of blaster bolts. Stuff like that happened all the time, on a daily basis almost, thought Ezra somewhat bitterly. But if the Force had seen fit to warn him ahead of time, something big and probably bad was going to happen.

He was nearly there and had almost managed to tramp down the worrying thoughts, when he once again spotted Kanan struggling to get to the same place he was. His master looked positively ragged, and Ezra wouldn't have been entirely surprised if he whipped out his lightsaber on the next crate, ship, or pilot to get in his way. As Ezra got closer though, Kanan's Force signature said that he was more than just extremely annoyed with the impassable labyrinth. Something else was bothering him. He stopped when he sensed Ezra and waited for him.

"Ezra..." The jedi started as his padawan put a hand on his shoulder again. Not looking at him, he opened and closed his mouth once then twice, as if debating what to say next. Ezra knew that Kanan knew that Ezra knew that Kanan had something big and troubling on his mind that he really should've spilled immediately but was going to try to brush off with excuses for as long as possible anyway. Yup. The man flashed his 'no worries' (yes, definitely worries) smile and said "Alright, you know I'm lost. Help."

Ezra had to sigh. "Come on." Kanan was usually pretty forthcoming in recent years. Since escaping Mustafar and defeating the Grand Inquisitor way back when, he'd been so much more open about the Force and more relaxed in general than when he'd first offered to train Ezra. But every once in a while he could still be quite stubborn. Ezra decided to start slow.

Guiding Kanan around a stack of crates, he said jokingly," Wow, you're actually asking for help when you need it. Do you need to see a med-droid?"

"You complaining?"

"Nope."

A slightly awkward silence. Ezra dropped his hand when they were at the foot of the narrow staircase leading to the command center. Kanan knew his way around here for sure.

"Sooooo, I had a nutso Force-vision. I'll tell you about it if you tell me 'bout yours." He said nonchalantly, and smiling.

Kanan sighed and raked a hand down his face and through his neatly trimmed beard. Ezra could tell he'd really been hoping to avoid the subject for a while.

"Fine. Yes, I had a vision, and I'd love to tell you it's bantha crap, but it's almost certainly important, and you're not gonna stop pestering me, but I really don't feel like trying to make sense of it right now, so can it please wait until after the briefing." He explained brusquely.

Ezra was slightly taken aback. "Okay."

...

"Was there this weird deserty, rockyish planet?"

Kanan sighed again. "Yes."

"Was there this guy distracting you while you were getting shot at?"

"Nooo..?"

"So what do y—"

"Ezra can it please wait?"

Ezra stopped and thrust his hands out in exasperation.

"Kanan, I don't know if yours was different than mine, but in mine there was a battle or something going on, and you know it's bad when the Force says something about it. I really think this is important. I don't know why you're being so stubborn about it."

Even though his eyes were sightless and glazed over with scar tissue, Kanan's gaze seemed to focus directly on his. It was always slightly unsettling when he did that. "Whatever moon we saw was strong with the Force for whatever reason. That may or may not be relevant in the near future, but... I didn't see a battle, I saw something I can't explain yet." He'd been carrying his mask while they walked, and now he set it on his face, the white markings symbolic of eyes stared at Ezra instead of Kanan, who was decidedly acting strange.

"Well whatever _I_ saw is going to happen."

"I agree."

"So can we discuss it?"

"No."

" _Why not_?"

"Because Hera's about to yell at us for being late."

"Huh?"

"There you two are!" Ezra looked up to see the Twi'lek in question standing at the top of the stair case. Kanan had sensed her ahead of time.

"I thought I was going to have to chase you down. Kanan, I told you to hurry, this one's urgent."

Ezra apologized for him. "Sorry, we both had crazy visions—tell you about them later—then Kanan needed help sooo, yeah. Sorry."

Her green eyes adopted a look of concerned intrigue at the mention of the visions, replacing her previous annoyance.

"You _both_ had a vision?"

"Yes, but we'll figure it out later."

"If it has any relevance whatsoever during the meeting, I want to hear it." She gave the two Jedi her 'captain Hera' look. They followed her the rest of the way up the stairs, down a lengthy corridor, and into the carrier's main control room which served as the Massassi group's make shift command center. It was a large space dominated by control panels and screens, and of course the main viewport showing black space and the Galaxy's billions of bright, silver stars.

Ezra briefly expected to see Commander Jun Sato at the center console, before he remembered that Sato was dead. He pushed down the small pang of regret that followed the realization. In his place stood Jan Dodonna and surrounding him were the other importants whom Ezra was still trying to memorize. Zeb and Rex were there already as well. Hera took her place and the two Jedi followed.

Once they'd made sure everyone was definitely present this time, General Dodonna addressed the group.

"As you all know, the entire fleet has been low on fuel for quite some time. Our numbers have grown and while that is essential to our cause, our need for supplies and fuel has grown as well. For the past few months we have tried to send small parties to obtain any fuel we can from imperially occupied planets, but most of these missions have failed and those that succeed simply are not enough."

The grey-haired general paused long enough for the anxious mumbling to start up among the other rebel officers. Ezra had anticipated this. He was sure Kanan and the rest of the team had to, though no one had said it. No one wanted to think of the possibility of their ships croaking one by one and making easy pickings or the Empire, and leaving a convenient bread crumb trail to the rest of the fleet. There simply wasn't much they could do. The _Ghost_ was one of few ships that ever had any success in snagging what they needed from the Empire and, as Dodonna had said, it just was not enough.

"General, do you mean to say we are completely out of fuel?" Asked a female Bothan Ezra had forgotten the name of.

"Not completely. But we are getting desperate. I will not try to soften this up any further; we only have enough to make it to any planets within seven parsecs. At that point we must refuel one way or another or it won't be long before the Empire finds us crippled."

More mutterings from the gathered rebels. Seven parsecs? Was there _anything_ safe to land on within that distance?

"Why can't we just join the rest of the Alliance at Yavin IV?" Asked Tilwa Nar. Ezra did remember a few names. He was pretty sure the pointy-eared, lavender-skinned Sephi lead one of the smaller cells that had recently joined them. She continued "We have not had any major conflict in over a month. It must be safe to rejoin them by now."

"Whether or not it is safe to return to Yavin, it's alot more than seven parsecs away." Answered a human officer.

Before any arguments could get out of hand, Dodonna continued. "We have identified two systems within that distance that might be safe. Both only have a very light imperial occupation if any at all, and though sparsely populated, there is a small chance they will offer fuel for a price."

"What price?" Several people asked at once.

"We have no idea. We don't know much about these populations. It's possible they won't offer it at all." Said Dodonna.

"Then what's the point?"

"How do we know they aren't imperial sympathizers and we won't have star destroyers surrounding us the moment we drop out of hyperspace?"

For the first time during the meeting, Hera spoke up. "We will be sitting ducks soon either way. General, you said there were two planets that would be our best options. What have we got?"

Ezra noticed Kanan was fidgeting distractedly. Though never one for these long, drawn out briefings, Kanan rarely fidgeted. Something about the vision was bothering him. But now that he'd noticed Kanan's stress, he felt the Force pricking apprehensively at the back of his mind too. Before he could ponder it any further, General Dodonna produced two sections of a holomap on the console in answer to Hera's inquiry. One showed a small decrepit looking and seemingly featureless planet. The second showed a much larger planet but focused on a single desert moon. The Force swirled excitedly in Ezra's mind at the sight of it.

"That one!" Ezra and Kanan exclaimed at the same moment. They looked at each other in confusion. At least Ezra looked. Kanan's gaze was blank of course, though his expression conveyed his surprise. The room was dead silent, every sentient staring at the two Force wielders.

"I'm guessing you two have an opinion on this." Hera said eyeing them. Her tone clearly said 'spill'. Ezra and Kanan couldn't keep Jedi secrets from her anytime.

"Well..."Ezra dragged out the word uneasily. He didn't know most of the people surrounding the console. They couldn't _not_ know that they were Jedi, but how many of them thought their abilities were credible? What were they expecting of them? Kanan looked as uncomfortable as Ezra felt. He could sense him mentally slapping himself for blurting out.

"...We both had a vision earlier today, and we both saw that moon." He finished.

"Right Kanan?" He indicated for backup.

"Yes, this is what I saw. Though whether or not it will have fuel is impossible to say. The Force could have shown us this for an entirely different reason."

"I think it will—at least, I feel we definitely need to go there." Ezra declared with certainty. Whether or not it was power cells, he knew there was something very important on that moon.

"I do not intend disrespect to our Jedi friends, but can we really make this discision based on...on a feeling?" Asked the Bothan. The other officers eyed Ezra and Kanan doubtfully. But then Rex and Zeb both spoke up enthusiastically, "We do it all the time." Said the Lasat warrior. Rex added, "In my experience, it is never a good idea to doubt a Jedi. I vouch for them."

"Me too." Said Hera without hesitation. "But perhaps we should divide our forces. Half the fleet go to the planet and the other half and the _Ghost_ go to the moon."

"That's as good a plan as any we can come up with at the moment Captain Syndulla." Said the general. "General Salvin, your unit will head for Luad. Commander Nar and Arrow Squadron will go with you. The rest of us will set coordinates for the Jedha system. Best of luck."

The gathering broke up, the different officers heading for their stations and making transmissions. Kanan, Ezra, Hera, Rex and Zeb stayed together as they made their way back to the hangar. To conserve fuel, they wouldn't fly the Ghost until they reached their destination, so they were free to wander where they pleased for the deration of the trip through hyperspace.

"Jedha, huh?" Said Rex thoughtfully. "Sounds like a Jedi-ish place."

"I don't recall ever hearing the name at the temple on Coruscant." Replied Kanan. "But it definitely resonated with the Force in the vision, and...yeah." He was about to add more. "I'm gonna meditate on it until we get there." He said quickly, making a beeline for their ship.

"I have more diagnostics to run, see how much fuel _we_ have left." Hera announced. A little way ahead they heard Kanan give a frustrated groan as he was reminded of the brutal terrain of rebel junk that was between him and the Ghost. The Twi'lek sighed. "And I'd better get him back in one piece. As she picked up her pace, she called back to the remaining spectres and the clone veteran: " _And_ I want those canon barrels spotless before we get there, boys."

Zeb, Rex and Ezra groaned in unison. It was going to be a long trip... to Jedha. Ezra assured the others, he would catch up. Leaning against the wall of and empty corridor, he pondered what the Force had told—was telling him. It wasn't just that it seemed to have a strong presence on the moon. Something important—or someone...the thought brought him back to Kanan's strange attitude for some reason. But he couldn't fathom why.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author Notes: I apologize for the copy paste issue earlier! This chapter is a little short but its where the action begins. I also made a small update to chapter 2 that will be relevant later... probably. Enjoy!**

Only five minutes over Jedha and they had already lost half of their A-wings to the Imperials. The small, seemingly insignificant moon wasn't even under the Empire's control...until now. Once again, Thrawn had somehow managed to track them. Or predict where they would be. Ezra had no clue how, for they had taken every precaution they could think of. But it was definitely the Grand Admiral's Star Destroyer, Chimaera, along with several others that had charged out of hyper-space moments before, ramming into and thoroughly decimating three rebel cruisers. Before that they had already engaged several squads of TIE fighters. Taken completely by surprise they were quickly losing fighters. Ezra was still near the command center when they were ambushed so there was no time to take his place on the Ghost. Instead he slapped on the first pilot's helmet he came across and jumped in the nearest fighter—a beat-up A-wing—and fired the engines.

He jabbed the commlink, "Spectre Six to Ghost, do you copy?" His ship was just airborne when a crackly reply came through. Through the static he could barely make out Hera's words.

"I hear you Spectre Six, where are you?"

"Just pulling out of the hangar. How'd they find us?"

"I d-cccchhhhssssttt-cccchhh-Ezr-CCHHHHH!" Was her reply.

The comms were being jammed. But Ezra couldn't worry about that now. The carrier shuddered as a torpedo exploded against its hull, only lightly damaging it, but another, and another soon hit. The lighting stuttered and went dark except the dim red emergency lights. But Ezra was already pulling out. Mere seconds after leaving the relative safety of the hangar he had to dive to avoid the blaster fire of a TIE. He soon out maneuvered it, but the space around Jedha's atmosphere was buzzing with them. The Y-wing that had left the hangar behind him took a direct hit to the engines and began to spiral out of control. Sensing the pilot's panic through the Force, Ezra reversed the fighter and fired several red blazes at their pursuer. His shots hit of course. And the TIE was quickly reduced to debris, but it was too late for the Y-wing. It exploded and Ezra felt the pilot's life force snuffed out. But he was quickly occupied with three more imps. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea.

As he spiraled through the net of bright green lasers, firing at anything he could, he realized how little red there was. Only four cruisers and maybe two dozen fighters zipped around in disarray, their formations broken and chain of command disintegrated. The destroyers were forming a blockade around the planet. They had to retreat and fast. He once again heard the whine of a TIE and banked just in time to avoid the fire. But now it was chasing him. Only the force saved him from colliding with another Y-wing as he tried to lose the TIE.

Suddenly a beautiful gem-shaped VCX-100 light freighter roared into view, cannons blazing. Circling around behind him, it blasted a number of enemy ships out of the galaxy including the one harassing Ezra. The Ghost then sailed alongside his A-wing, and their combined ammo cleared the space around them for a few moments. For whatever reason, the Imperials must have been having technical difficulties, because the comm suddenly connected and Kanan's voice sounded through Ezra's helmet transmitter.

"Ezra, do you copy?"

"Yeah, I hear you Kanan," he replied urgently, officially abandoning their code names, "We're not gonna last much longer!"

"I know," said Kanan, "Rex tells me they have our position surrounded. Retreating might be difficult, but we can't afford to lose any more ships!"

Their conversation was put on hold as a fresh set of TIEs swarmed them. Ezra banked to cover the Ghost's port side, while Zeb banged away to starboard with the dorsal turret, and Rex in the nose gun. Rebel fighters still zipped around in Ezra's peripheral vision, but as usual the Ghost got special attention. Ezra couldn't stick too close to it or he would get caught in the crossfire. Instead he stirred his ship in a wide arc around the incoming fighters and blasted a few from behind. One nearly crashed into the Ghost as one of its six-sided wing panels crumbled under his fire and blew off.

"That was a little close Ezra!" Zeb's voice cracked into the communication unit. Now that they were farther apart, the signal began to jam again and Ezra wasn't sure if his sarcastic "You're welcome" made it through.

Then Hera's excited voice cut through the static. "That star destroyer's been drawn out of position, we have an opening, let's go!"

Thrawn is gonna murder whoever's captaining that thing, thought Ezra. More of the remaining rebel ships that hadn't yet used up their last reserves of fuel saw it to and began jumping into hyperspace, hopefully to rendezvous with an intact other half of the fleet. But as the damaged but still functioning carrier maneuvered into position to make the jump, the enemy finally noticed the escape route. "Hurry!" Zeb shouted into the stuttering comm. Ezra sped behind the Ghost as they made a mad dash for the opening before it was blocked again. The freighter twisted in an impossible maneuver only a pilot like Hera Syndulla was capable of, as a mass of TIEs attempted to break off their escape. Ezra fell behind in the process. He dodged the enemy ships, but now he had seconds to catch up and jump to hyperspace before there was no escape. He grit his teeth as he drove the engines to full power, beelining for the Ghost. He was almost there when he felt a slight twinge in the Force from behind. Kanan must have sensed it to, for just as Hera yelled "jump NOW!", he almost screamed "Wait, something's wrong, EZRA LOOK OUT!"

Even his Jedi reactions couldn't save him from the hit from behind. "KARABAST!" The fighter jerked at the impact and rocketed out of control for meters before he managed to right it. Alarms blared, but miraculously the ship was intact and functioning...except for the hyperdrive. Kriff.

"Ezra, are you okay? Ezra? SPECTRE SIX DO YOU COPY?!"

"Hera, I'm fine but my hyperdrive is dead. I'm heading for the moon."

"No, hang on we'll pick you up!" The ship started to turn around.

"NO! Guys, you'll never make it! Just jump, I'll hide and catch up later.

"Ezr—"

"GO!"

The Ghost disappeared. Ezra was the only remaining rebel. Except for the corvette that blew up moments before jumping. It would be a miracle if he reached Jedha's surface in one piece. Before he could gain anyone's attention, he headed for the moon as fast as the little ship would go.

 **And there's my attempt at drama.**


	4. Chapter 4

**The Force, this is long overdue! I've been so busy this year, no time to fangirl :( This chapter was originally supposed to cover more, but after months of drag writing, I decided it was sufficient for the time being. I just couldn't seem to be happy with it for a long time. But now, after lots of edits, I hope its not too bad. PLEASE, PLEASE review so I can improve! :D characters out of character? Is it boring since I cut it short? Is my description of the Force too weird? Also, I know I'm late, but if anyone still wants to geek out about that AWESOME ENDING, feel free to PM ;)**

Though Kanan had always enjoyed some reckless flying, right now it felt like a rancor had picked up his eternal black box and decided to chuck it into the next system. The Ghost was pitching violently as Hera guided it around multiple adversaries. He could tell for the most part what was going on outside Jedha's atmosphere and it was not good. He could hear the shrill whine of TIE fighters, and feel the objects of mass carving through the Force. Then a sharp jolt up his spine every time a fighter exploded and another pilot was lost, be it rebel or imp. This was one of those times when being blind really sucked. Because it took a lot of effort to shoot anything by using the Force alone, Kanan almost never manned the guns anymore. Zeb and Rex handled that, and they did it well. But the Jedi could sense that they were heavily outnumbered.

"What's it look like out there?" He ground out as the Ghost twisted again.

"Bad." Rex said gravely through the internal comm unit, "There are six star destroyers surrounding our position. It's a loose formation but our ships are starting to run out of fuel. We've got stand-stills left and right, and they know it!"

"Great."

Suddenly a rather important detail occurred to Kanan. "Did Ezra make it on board?"

"I don't think so!" Replied Hera through clenched teeth.

"He stayed behind after the briefing, " Zeb's gruff voice cut into the comm accompanied by the din of the canons, the hard work of barrel scrubbing rapidly being undone. "Definitely trying to get out of the dirty work. Not that I blame the kid..." Rex added pointedly.

Despite just pulling off what felt to Kanan like a particularly snazzy maneuver, Hera answered with unfaltering vigor, "You all completely deserved that!"

"You seem more upset about it than the man himself! Kanan?"

"Oh sure, I just love showing off my magnificently bruised shins to the highest bidder!" He said flippantly, wishing they would just tell him where his Padawan had ended up.

"You're welcome luv." Hera chimed loftily.

"So, where is he?"

Before Hera could reply, the comm system beeped to life and Kanan could hear Ezra loud and clear: "Spectre Six to Ghost, do you copy?"

Hera answered him, and Ezra confirmed that he had ship and was on his way to join the fight, but suddenly they were interrupted by violent static and their connection broke.

"Jamming comms." The Twi'lek huffed, then turned the freighter into yet another gut-wrenching spin.

"Is the kid okay?" Called Rex from down in the nose gun.

"Is he making himself useful this time?" Zeb added.

"He has a ship, but we can't tell which one." Hera informed them," It's becoming a pretty uneven playing field out there. Kanan try to find him!"

"I'm working on it!" Kanan was already probing their Force bond for a location. It didn't take long to find Ezra himself, but he still had to pinpoint him among the other fighters with just the Force. Concentrating hard, he pointed out the viewport. "That A-wing. We should get that TIE off his tail."

"I see him." Hera expertly guided the ship in an arch around Ezra's smaller craft, which Kanan now had a clear focus on. The TIE managed one more unsuccessful shot before the Ghost came hurtling to the rescue. Together Zeb and Rex demolished several other enemy ships before focusing on Ezra's adversary.

"Steady Hera, I don't want to hit him." Shouted Rex. They could just barely hear him without the comm.

"Take your shot now, we have more incoming!" Replied the pilot urgently, though she kept the Ghost stable just long enough to hear a satisfying explosion.

"Ha got 'em!" The clone shouted again, except this time they heard him a little too loud and clear.

"Ow! Comm's back online." Kanan threw a hand up to his ear.

"That's lucky. Kanan, try to get a hold of Ezra." Said Hera.

By now, Ezra was flying alongside them. Both ships had managed to take out a number of adversaries, and they had a few moments of respite. Kanan did manage to contact Ezra, and after agreeing wholeheartedly that this was a mess they desperately needed to get out of, again broke contact to deal with the next wave of TIEs.

Kanan continued to trace Ezra's path through the Force. For some moments he could clearly detect his every move. It wasn't often that they fought on separate ships. Though Kanan knew Ezra was a decent pilot and he trusted him to hold his own, he very much preferred everybody to be on the same ship—one they all trusted. Not like he could do anything better at the moment, he reached deep into the Force in order to track his padawan as well as the surrounding battle. Perhaps he went a little too deep.

One moment he was concentrating on the battle, then suddenly he was plunged so deep in the Force that all the chaos of their current situation, everything that was happening in that moment was slowed to a standstill and all that was supposed to be relevant faded to a white noise on the edge of Kanan's senses. He could still feel the Ghost spinning, and hear

the voices of his companions, but they felt far away. Kanan was completely caught off guard by this new sensation.

He tried to pull out, retreat to reality, but he couldn't; he started to panic. He was sinking deeper. A vibrating, swirling mosh of... stuff pulsed around Kanan and through him as if every midichlorian in every one of his cells was suddenly receiving an urgent message. Images from his darkest nightmares raced past his mind's eye, things he'd thought he'd made his peace with... Images of his past, of Coruscant, of Depa Billaba, of Kaller, Janus, Gorse, Hera, Lothal, Ezra... they came so fast he couldn't possibly process them. How disconcerting; he couldn't feel himself anymore...

 _Caleb._

The voice was soundless. Unrecognizable. Yet oddly familiar.

 _Caleb, you are deep within the Force; you are deep within yourself. You see yourself in fear._

 _Who are you?!_ Kanan shouted into the spin, but he had no voice either. He was formless. _I'm dead. The Ghost was shot. We didn't make it_.

 _No Caleb. You must calm yourself. Let your mind settle. See yourself whole, and your memories will settle too._

Kanan did. Slowly. The energy around and within him slowed to a steady thrum; the thrum that had always been present, only now it was a hundred times amplified. The images faded, and Kanan realized that he could feel himself breathing, though the feeling was distant, as if he'd left his body on a different layer of existence. The others were there too; their spirits close to the surface, where he could sense their heartbeats. They were still alive.

 _Good Caleb. Now. Listen._

The phantom voice faded.

 _Wait! What is this?_ Kanan called after it.

Listen Padawan.

 _What? Master?_

 _Listen. Find them. Find it._

The voice was gone. Kanan could no longer detect a trace of its presence. Listen? Hmm. Yes, he could hear it, feel it. The call. A song he'd heard long ago.

"Jump NOW!" Kanan gasped as Hera's voice blasted his senses as he was quite suddenly jammed back into reality. To say he was shocked would've been an understatement. His world was fuzzy and black and loud and in circles. His memory momentarily blank, his first complete thought was _worst karking hangover since Correllia._

He was still stunned, but the Force had one more small detail to show him as voices he barely heard followed each other through the comm.

Grasping the meaning of Hera's command, and the feeling of impending danger towards a certain A-wing, Kanan shouted "Wait something's wrong! EZRA LOOK OUT!"

Too late.

/

Ezra was quite relieved, and definitely surprised, when he managed to enter Jedha's atmosphere undetected. His puny smoking A-wing was apparently forgotten. Black space was now replaced by cool blue, and he could no longer make out the imperial blockade surrounding that half of the moon. That didn't mean he was safe though. He scanned the landscape below for a place to land. Luckily, the terrain was made up primarily of massive rock formations that would easily conceal the ship.

Ezra would have preferred to keep flying for a while, to put some distance between himself and the last location the Empire could've noticed him. But his fuel gage indicated that he was running on fumes, and the craft was still trailing smoke from where the TIE had shot him. There was zero chance of getting far enough across Jedha's surface that he wouldn't pop up right under the destroyers if he tried to make a break for Hyperspace. Oh, and the Hyperdrive was dead anyway. Perfect.

Ezra slowly brought the fighter close to the surface. His first thought was to dive to extinguish the fire that refused to put it itself out, but he could almost hear Sabine yelling at him: 'You idiot, are you trying to make this ship blowup faster?!' Though it was going to blow soon anyway if the flames didn't snuff out in next few minutes. Soon the ship was puttering around in between the tall reddish mesas. A wide arch of stone close to the ground looked like a good place to set down and Ezra veered towards it. At this point, the controls were lagging and then jerking when they did respond, so it wasn't his most elegant landing ever. As soon as he could, he shoved open the canopy and jumped out of the cockpit, choking on fumes. Something on the control panel had exploded and filled the cockpit with smoke.

Sensing that the hit had been worse than he originally thought, and that the A-wing couldn't keep itself intact any longer, the rogue Jedi scrambled away from the craft. He made it just far enough to avoid the worst of the shockwave from the explosion. He was still blasted forward into the gritty sand, grunting as he landed hard and the wind was knocked out of him. He still managed to throw his arms over his head as debris rained down. Several chunks of twisted hot metal thudded into the sand around him. When all he could hear was the intense ringing in his ears, Ezra groaned, rolled over and sat up. Blinking grit out of his eyes, he glared at the smoldering skeleton of the ship.

"Great. Just great." He muttered. It was clear from here that there was nothing salvageable among the charred wreckage. He was once again stranded on a desert planet with absolutely nothing. At least last time he'd had Chopper for company.

Guess the only thing to do is get moving... before the Empire finds this. He started walking up the small hill of red sand he'd thrown himself onto moments before, wincing as his bruised chest flared, and wiping a trickle of blood from his cheek.

As more of the land came into view, it stretched out as the same unfavorable terrain Ezra had seen from the air. That would be a pain, but now that the turmoil of his arrival dissipated into the calm of untouched wilderness, Ezra noticed something else. As it had in his and Kanan's visions, this moon was vibrating with the presence of the Force. A very strong presence. It had been a more insistent than usual hum around him since they'd entered the system, but there had been too much chaos to pay attention to it. There was something else as well. Deep within the web of unfamiliar ecology, there was a familiar voice, a whisper. It was so faint that Ezra couldn't place it at that moment. But it was a song he'd heard before.

There was no time to ponder it now though. He started forward again, resigning himself to a long, hard trek towards civilization—assuming there was any within reachable distance. Though the air was actually pleasantly cool here, he tried not to think of water.

Ezra had been trudging on for about half an hour, in as straight a line as he could manage following his most basic Force instinct, while ignoring the horrendous burning in his side, when he thought he heard a very faint hum. It was nearly undetectable, but a rebel knew better than to dismiss it as a trick of the imagination. He stopped and cocked his head, closing his eyes so that his hearing became his primary sense as Kanan had taught him. Under the whine and wisp of wind scraping sand over rock, he heard it again. It slowly gained intensity, and soon the hum turned into a rumble from above. _Karabast._

Ezra sprinted for cover, the nearest being a small alcove between two large boulders. He dived for the space and squished himself flat against the rock, which provoked another wave of pain in his lower chest. Ezra peered out in time to see the imperial search ships coming into view. The sound of the engines now reverberated against the rock formations, echoing and penetrating. He backed as far into his hiding place as possible. If he was caught, he had a grand total of one blaster he'd forgotten to charge, one lightsaber, and zero backup. Not that the imps were ever very good at finding him or any of his teammates in these situations, but he really couldn't afford to get captured this time.

A half dozen of the bulky shuttles swept the area for several minutes, but eventually they moved on, the cacophony of motors fading into the distance. As usual they'd passed him over. He waited until the land was completely silent and then a minute more before emerging from his hide out. The search ships might have overlooked him, but he needed to move before ground crews showed up.

Twenty minutes later, Ezra was really starting to think he'd cracked a rib during the explosion. His left side felt like it was on fire as he alternated between walking and jogging, keeping close to any available cover. Eventually he had to stop. In the shadow of a large arch, he leaned against the smooth rock and lifted his shirt part way. Gritting his teeth, he examined the patch of black and blue that spread across half his ribcage. It was one hell of bruise, but he forced himself to rub his fingers over the lot of it. It all hurt, but one part was particularly excruciating. It was also swollen and burning hot. It had to be a fracture but there was nothing he could do for it at the moment, for once again the hum of heavy vehicles was carried to Ezra by the wind, this time accompanied by the shrill whine of speeder bikes.

Ground crews had arrived and couldn't be more than a mile away. "Oh come on, they never get here so fast!" He said aloud (a mistake, his parched throat told him) Thrawn must have known it was one of the Ghost crew who had been left behind. The Chiss admiral would have been watching the ship carefully, and seen its attempts at protecting his A-wing and hesitance to leave the system without it. With that knowledge, Thrawn would be thorough in his search.

Ezra wasn't in much condition to outsmart that tactician, but the next set of stone risings appeared to be some sort of canyon. That was a start. The sky was just beginning to darken. The air turned even chillier as the sun cast long shadows over the land. The wide canyon was a gateway of shadow between the stone walls. That worked in Ezra's favor.

Ezra ducked behind a boulder, eyeing the distance between here and the canyon across an open space. His breath hitched with the pain in his ribs. He doubted he could run fast enough to get there without being spotted, but he had to take the chance...now. He drew his lightsaber, ready to ignite if he was shot at, and sprinted for the darkness.

He was only a few meters from the canyon entrance when two speeder bikes complete with white-armored troopers appeared from the maze of stone Ezra had just left behind. That stone maze must have been throwing off sound waves, because they were a whole lot closer than Ezra had thought.

One shouted something that Ezra couldn't make out, but probably was along the lines of 'lookee, rebelscum, blast em!' At least that's what Ezra's imagination said when he was in near delirium with pain.

Ezra expected shots any second, but they never came. Perhaps they hadn't seen him after all. Or they really wanted him alive. He looked back to see that they were still heading in his direction, but for some reason they were not going full speed. In fact, they seemed to have slowed down. Just as he reached the edge of the shadows, Ezra stopped. Something was in there. No. Someone. The speeders were very close, but Ezra didn't move. Suddenly, an object flew from somewhere high on the canyon wall. The round object sailed high over Ezra's head, then landed with a ping in front of the bikes, about a hundred feet away. Ezra had just enough time to think _when did Sabine get here?_ Then, _BAM_!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Yes I'm still alive. Summer's nearly done with and it sucks, but hey! I finished a chapter! I do hope it is substantial, for it is a bit short (and improvised). If anyone is getting bored with this story, please tell me. Its hard to make stuff happen! But I will try much harder if you truly find my pacing unbearable. Also, apologies in advance for my severe lack of knowledge about how SW ships work. Wookieepedia has been surprisingly useless, and I will happily edit this up if any one says so. SO PLEASE REVIEW! Wow, I hope people are still keeping up with the fics even though the show is over. Such a beautiful ending it was... By the way 'qa faho' is Ryl for what the hell.**

Ezra ducked instinctively, the bright light shining through his eyelids. It was bright and very loud, but as he looked up, Ezra realized that was all it was. A flash bomb. The troopers had swerved, skittering to either side with the whine of overworked controls. As they were righting themselves, Ezra searched the canyon wall for the bomber, elated that the imperials had an enemy. That didn't mean he had an ally though; he was nervous to step farther into the dark pathway, for he could be the next target. But soon he didn't have a choice as the troopers began firing into the canyon entrance, likely trying to scare off their attackers. The red laser bolts pitted the stone around him, spraying showers of pebbles. Instinctively Ezra ignited his lightsaber as he backed into the canyon, deflecting shots, before pressing himself into a groove in the rock.

 _"QA FAHO?!"_

Ezra looked up sharply. The startled voice had come from close by. How had he not sensed them? Some scrabbling, then he saw a dark shape flitting between shadows deeper into the throat of the canyon. Before they were out of ear-shot, Ezra caught a few words they loudly whispered into a commlink, "—Not one of ours—lightsaber!—Moroff get over here..." Whatever they said next was lost to distance. By now, every breath hurt, as every movement aggravated his injury. He knew it would hurt more later, once the adrenalin wore off.

Ezra could hear more activity further in, but his attention was drawn to the opening, where the speeders were hit again by another bright flash, this one launched from somewhere along the outer edge of the stone formations that made the canyon, away from the gorge. More attackers were up there, and this time they had thrown the bomb behind the troopers, chasing them forward, toward the canyon. At the same time, another explosion lit up the mesas behind, this one caused by a real grenade, though a weak one. Ezra could see the heavily armored transport it was targeting. The vehicle lumbered on a little further before the next bomb managed to damage its engine. Almost immediately it was swarmed by more raiders; five or six came charging out from crevices and grottos in the rocks. Had they been there the whole time? The bike troopers realized what had happened and attempted to turn around and aid the transport, but the next few bombs prevented that. Some were more flash bombs, and some made dangerous explosions, but they made sure the troopers were driven ever closer to the canyon's maw.

Ezra still couldn't find any signatures, though now he was actively trying, even the bike troopers were invisible. He needed to move. But something stronger hit his conscience then. From the transport a faint unworldly keening. It was song-like. Yet Ezra could feel distress. It was almost like—

The first speeder roared past Ezra, so close it nearly clipped him. The second followed a moment later. The wind they created whipped his clothes, the mechanical whine shrieking in his ears. The song was still in his head as he nearly fell over in shock, gasping. But it was rapidly fading. In fact, it suddenly seemed as if the entire world had dulled somehow, his senses became muffled.

As he stared bewilderedly at the chaos around him, Ezra wasn't sure what to do. These new guys were having no trouble with the troopers—he heard the shouts, the buzz of a stun shot, and the familiar clack of a fist ramming a helmet, as the speed bikes rounded the bend in the canyon. The transport outside was thoroughly conquered.

He didn't think he could hide, it was definitely pointless to run, and either way his options disappeared as two very strong and suffocatingly furry arms wrapped around him from behind. One pinned his arms and the other cut off his startled yelp, snuffing his breath with thick white fur. As his head was tilted backward, he was momentarily staring up at a masked face and beady eyes. Ezra panicked. He bucked in the giant's grasp, ignoring the pain that flashed through his chest, but there was no escape. He called on the Force to help him, but nothing happened. That's when the realization clicked. How he hadn't been able to sense the danger, why he'd suddenly felt blind. The Force...was gone? A heavy blow to his skull made the rest disappear.

 _/_

 _"_ Dammit." Kanan muttered vehemently. Hera sighed heavily, and Kanan heard the soft rustle of her clothing as she leaned away from the controls, the vortex of hyperspace carrying the _Ghost_ for her.

"He is okay, isn't he?"

"For now." He answered her truthfully.

He was just as worried as Hera was though; for if Ezra did get in trouble, it was probably going to be a long time before they could help. Hera had already dialed down heating and lighting as much as possible as well as switched off everything else in the ship that required power. But that didn't make any promises; they were now running on fumes.

"We will find him," Hera stated in a hard voice, "We always do."

"S'pose so," Kanan muttered again, collapsing a little further into his seat, and staying hidden behind his mask.

For a few brooding moments, the only sounds were those of Chopper quietly monitoring the ship, and tweaking the concentration of their remaining power. Then the not-so-automatic-anymore door grated loudly as Zeb forced it open so he and Rex could squeeze through.

"We lost again," grumbled Zeb as he slouched into a passenger seat, while Rex leaned against the door after it groaned shut. Their frustration was highly evident in their sense.

"We lost Ezra again too. And do I even want to know how much fuel we've got left?" Rex asked.

Hera swiveled the pilot's chair to face them, "Some of us might make it to Luad to rendezvous with the rest of the fleet. Those who don't... will have to hope we can find fuel and get to them before the Empire does."

"If they're going to be sitting in the middle of open space, how long will the life-support last?" asked Kanan.

"Hard to say, which is why we need to solve this. Fast."

No sooner than Hera declared this, Chopper whistled urgently and the _Ghost_ began to shudder. Kanan sensed the lights flicker. Hera cursed.

"You didn't happen to know whether or not _we'd_ make it, did you?" Zeb growled.

Instead of answering, Hera yelled over her shoulder, "Chopper, I thought you said we were still at three percent!"

The droid warbled indignantly.

"What do you mean you _rounded up?!"_

Before Hera even gave the order, Kanan jabbed the buttons that would kill the last of their light and screening, leaving only life support and their failing hyperdrive, a small parasite of panic swimming through his blood. They had to make it!

But it was no use. No one bothered saying anything as the craft shuddered again, and Hera dropped it back into realspace, before they could fall into it. The uncertainty and apprehension in everyone's sense climbed a few notches, as the ship stopped moving. No one voiced it, but it pressed down on Kanan's conscience. He breathed rhythmically to calm himself. Old Jedi techniques he'd never really bothered with until becoming blind.

Chopper grumbled the question in all their heads: [What now?]

Hera groped in the nearest compartment to the pilot's seat for a battery-powered flash-light. It didn't matter to Kanan, but the distant star light wouldn't be enough to see even the cockpit very well, and the rest of the ship had no windows. Kanan heard its click, and she replied to the whole team. "We get a transmitter working and we hope that someone other than the Empire picks up our distress call."

"Sure that's a good idea?" Rex asked, "They'll be looking for us; Thrawn knew some of us wouldn't make it, and I won't be surprised if he predicted our trajectory."

"I won't be surprised if he's figured out how to track us through hyperspace at this point." Added Zeb.

"It's a risk we'll have to take," Hera replied, "Or we'll freeze or suffocate, whichever comes first," she added rather grimly. It was getting rather chilly in the ship, and being a desert species, it had probably been bothering her for a while. None the less, Kanan sensed her gather herself and stand up. "Alright, let's set up camp."

/

The first thing Ezra was aware of when he began the waking up process, wasn't the awful pounding in his head—that came a few moments later—but the strange feeling on his lower chest. The pain was still present, but it was dulled, and mixed with a tingly numbness and a soft pressure, and an aching cold. He processed this, and the feeling of a makeshift cot beneath him and broken, filtered daylight coming from somewhere. Then with a groan pulled himself to wakefulness.

"Easy," An unfamiliar voice came softly from nearby. "One rib is bruised and the next one down is fractured, and we have very few medical supplies. I wouldn't try sitting up."

Ezra was just barely conscious enough to understand the words. The voice wasn't imperial, he could tell that much. It was smooth and gentle with only a touch of wryness. So he let himself relax a little before asking the obvious question. "Where am I?"

"Safe for now." A hand slid behind his head and tilted it upwards. A container was pressed to his lips and a tiny bit of water dripped into his mouth. It was then that Ezra remembered how dehydrated he had been. His throat was parched, and he desperately threw up a hand to make the water come faster. Such relief. But the bottle was quickly tipped away.

"Whoa now, small sips kid. You don't want to overwhelm your system."

Ezra actually looked at voice's owner now. Her brown hair was grey-streaked and cut even shorter than Sabine's had been when he last her. The human woman's face was narrow and lined but the eyes were blue and kind, and the eye brows above oddly familiar, though Ezra didn't contemplate it. Everything was coming back to him now. The fuel crisis, the battle, his trek across the desert, ending with the raid by... whoever these guys were apparently. Feeling much more alert, Ezra tried to sit up. Instead of protesting the woman sighed and reached to help as another groan escaped him. She let him have some more water, then without warning, she turned and called "He's awake, you two!"

Foot-steps echoed and that's when Ezra realized that they were in some form of cave, all the light was coming from some unseen shaft overhead. The ratted tan canvas concealing the newcomers was swept aside just as Ezra noticed it, revealing a young female Twi'lek who sauntered in and plopped herself next to his care taker. A tall being covered in long, snowy white fur followed, their lower face masked. With some unease, Ezra realized they must have been the creature who'd caught him and knocked him out.

"Who are you guys?" Ezra asked the next most obvious question to hide his slight self- consciousness, as his shirt was nowhere to be seen.

"Who are we? Let's start with who are you, and how you have a—"

"Let's start with names." The human cut off the Twi'lek. But Ezra's eyes flicked to the owner of the much more enthusiastic voice, which was feminine but deep and rustic. He recognized it as the voice he'd heard in the canyon just before his capture. Also she was the brightest-colored thing he'd seen in a while and his still-weary eyes were slightly dazzled. She had striking aqua-blue skin with black stripes down her Lekku, amber eyes, and a strange little creature clinging to a small backpack strapped over a brown heavy-duty jacket.

Before his examination could continue, the human introduced herself. "I am Cara." She prompted him. Ezra briefly debated whether or not he should give her his usual 'Jabba the Hutt', but that ploy had stopped being effective long ago, and these guys were obviously against the Empire.

"Ezra Bridger."

No signs of recognition crossed her features, so Ezra tried to sense it. Oh, wait. With a jolt of panic Ezra remembered why he'd been captured in the first place. The Force was gone. Or turned off. Or something.

"I'm Talo Zia, that's Moroff." Twi'lek gestured to herself then to the giant fuzzball, who rumbled confirmation but couldn't seem to speak basic. Some sort of albino wookiee?

"He's a Gigoran and his translator broke while he was trying to subdue you," Talo clarified. She sounded highly amused by the whole thing. The creature around her shoulders made a sort of clicking noise and blinked four swamp green eyes at him. Talo reached a hand up to rub its short caramel fur and scales. "This is Thornwit."

"Huh." Said Ezra, wondering if he was their prisoner despite their friendliness.

"So are you rebels?"

"Of a sort." Cara said, "But before we can tell you more, you need to tell us about this." She reached behind her back and pulled something off her belt. Ezra's lightsaber.

"Where did you get this?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Heeeey, look who's still alive! I hope I still have some readers left after my looong absence, hehe. If you're all still out there, thank you for not giving up on me! This chapter is a bit of a mess, so please review, so I'll know what to edit. Thanx, and enjoy!**

The transmitter was working. Beaming a signal to who knew who, as the _Ghost_ sat silent and invisible somewhere between the stars. 'Camp' ended up being a gathering of every warm thing on the ship; thermal blankets, cold-weather clothing, and everything in between, piled into the cockpit. There were cozier places to curl up, but no one wanted to abandon the viewport, or the transmitter. The crew sat silent and shivering in a small circle around the device, drinking cold caf and saving their breath. None of them were in the mood to lighten the situation with a flashlight game of Sabacc or reliving past misadventures. They were in survival mode.

Kanan and Hera both wanted nothing more than to curl up together and share what warmth and comfort they could. It was obvious from the way they leaned ever so slightly toward each other, trying too hard not to sneak glances. But neither voiced this nor made any move towards each other.

It was rather frustrating to watch, thought Zeb. He didn't need the Force to figure out years ago that the two had feelings for each other. It was woefully obvious, and yet they still acted as if it was their perfectly kept secret! _So much for them Jedi powers._ He thought wryly. He wasn't even the only one who knew, of course.

The Lasat growled and tried to rub down the fur that was sticking up all over his arms against the cold. Just as irritating as watching the two of them being miserable, was this blasted cold, this blasted helplessness, and this kriffing blasted silence! The sudden noise caused Hera and Kanan to bounce out of their stupor sharply, and Rex to jolt out of the doze he'd somehow managed to fall into. Zeb forced stiff legs to move and stood up.

"I'm done with this wait'n. I'm going to find something useful to do." Tossing his blanket unceremoniously on top of Hera, he wrenched open the door and thudded down the corridor. He didn't know what useful thing there was to do at the moment, but hopefully if Rex followed his lead, the two would allow themselves some peace together. _Ashla_ _knows they need it._

But Rex had already dozed off again, after grumbling only briefly about his aching joints and need for a real bunk. Apparently he was determined to sleep off the entire wait on the cockpit floor.

It wasn't a bad plan of action Kanan thought. His frustration was burning strong, singeing his attempts at meditation. Resentfully he had tried to lay out his vision and piece some of it together, but his mental filing system seemed to be askew. The memories had become blurred and mismatched.

Also, there were other people in the room, and even though one of them was usually a comforting and supportive point to focus on, she had snuggled deeper into Zeb's discarded blanket, rather than lean into Kanan, as he had half-heartedly hoped she would. Her sense was hazy and troubled, like his, but she was also falling asleep. Hera sleeping was a far too rare occurrence these days, and Kanan didn't dare disturb her...although it was a bit concerning. Kanan wondered where their oxygen was at, as he silently stood and padded toward the door, which he gently prodded open with the Force.

/

Ezra was about to jumble his words fantastically as he stared at his own weapon glinting innocently in Cara's hand. He managed to turn it into a rusty cough though, gaining him another draught of water and a moment to consider a cover story. He didn't have the Force to guide him now, the fact that it was so suddenly _gone_ was disturbing enough, and nothing in his gut was telling him anything about how much he should trust these people.

"I found it." He said simply, forcing his voice to sound matter of fact. He was thinking of Kanan's lightsaber suddenly, for he _had_ found that one. He latched onto the fond memory, picturing the crisp blue blade which he'd been so mesmerized by.

The others were unconvinced. "You _found_ it?" Cara said dubiously. Talo Zia arched a tattooed eyebrow. The little creature, Thornwit, blinked its four moss-colored eyes at Ezra, as if even it was skeptical.

"Yup."

"So, who did you steal it from?" Talo asked in here-we-go sort of voice. Ezra _had_ stolen it too.

"I didn't stea—"

"-One does not simply find a—do you know what this is?"

"Its a, um, lasersword."

Cara's blue eyes were boring into Ezra, as if she were x-raying him for lies.

"And do you know what that is?"

At this point Ezra wasn't sure if he should continue to play dumb. Again, he realized the muffling, blinding absence of the Force. He wished it would tell him what to say that would placate her, for he was certain that she knew exactly what she was talking about. Something in her penetrating gaze signaled that she was very invested in how he would answer, as if the weapon in her hand was the key to unfinished business. For better or for worse, it made him want to tell the truth.

"It's an ancient weapon." He tested. Cara raised her angled eyebrows a fraction.

"A Jedi weapon."

She exchanged a look with the other two beings. "We would like you to tell us everything you know about this lightsaber, starting with where you got it and who had it before you." She passed him the canteen again. The seriousness in her voice was unnerving, and it was obvious that she knew he had a lot he could tell her.

"Why? Why do you want to know? Who _are_ you?" he tried to sit up straighter. "I think I deserve some answers as to why you're keeping me here, before I give you information."

For a moment he thought he'd gone too far, but Cara just sighed. "No one is keeping you here. You can leave whenever you like."

"I wouldn't suggest it though," said Talo, " you're still injured and dehydrated, and seeing as you were ready to collapse in the middle of the desert, I'm guessing you lost your ship and supplies."

For the first time since entering, the snow-haired Gigoran growled something through his mask.

"Moroff would like to point out that its very obvious you're not from Jedha." Talo translated.

"But you are not a prisoner. I suppose you do have right to some basic information, as I'm sure you're aware that there are many who would turn you in for the credits if they saw you with this. We are agents of the Guardians of the Whills. Tell me, do you know what Kyber is?"

"It powers lightsabers," Ezra answered with more enthusiasm than he'd intended, "It resonates with..." He hesitated.

"The Force." Cara said the word with a subtle reverence, a slight longing, and suddenly Ezra was certain that she was not going to turn him in to the Empire.

"There was a temple in the Holy City. One of the very last places in the Galaxy where the Force was still acknowledged and respected. Though here they often call it the Whills; the messages of the Kyber crystals who are alive with the Force. But as you can see the Empire has conquered Jedha, and they've ransacked the Temple of Kyber, and sent its guardians onto the streets."

Ezra's attention was captured, he forgot about being cautious with these strangers. There were others who revered the Force?

"This wasn't a Jedi temple?" He asked.

"No. Jedi did visit from time to time, but the Temple of Kyber was a place for anyone to come and listen to the Whills, not just the Force-sensitive. But the Empire do not care. They are so determined to wipe out the memory of the Jedi, that they've destroyed a simple church." She turned her head away.

"That's not all, though," Talo continued, "They're mining the Kyber Crystals, and shipping them off-world. And they're taking the relics, but not destroying them. They're up to something."

Ezra nodded, remembering the Jedi temple on Lothal, and wondered if the Empire was doing the same thing there. What could they possibly want with Jedi artifacts other than to get rid of them?

"So, what exactly are you trying to do?"

"We are searching for, and taking back anything we can that's been stolen from the Temple, and we're trying to find out why the Empire wants artifacts and crystal, for obviously whatever plans they have for them are sinister. If we could, we would restore the Temple, but seeing as that is impossible, we are simply going have to hide and protect whatever we can find," Cara answered, "We don't even know of everything that was in there. But I didn't believe there were any lightsabers left..."

Ezra took this in. It was intriguing. Kanan had never mentioned any Force devotees besides the Jedi.

He had to ask. "Why?"

Confusion was in their eyes, and before really knowing what he was saying, he added quietly, "I thought no one remembered the Force anymore. I thought..." _That we are the only ones left._

"Why do you care?" He met the human woman's eyes, for he could see that it was more than just a mission to her, to protect some long-forgotten history.

Cara stared deep into his eyes for a long time. Her mouth twitched, and it seemed as if she was debating whether or not to open some old locked door in her mind.

"Where did you get the lightsaber?"

It was Ezra's turn to decide to trust, for it was clear that she would not elaborate until he proved he deserved it.

"I made it."

/

 _The soft keening song present in his soul, not his ears. A tiny Mandolorian_ _ship dashing between behemoth Star Destroyers, narrowly escaping a green fire netting. Go around, go behind! He wanted to shout. But it'd charged head on... Blue fire missiles were in pursuit now._

Hera heard a thump and a muffled yelp from somewhere behind her. She'd awoken ten minutes ago to find herself and Rex still in the cockpit, but Zeb and Kanan nowhere to be found. She'd been furious with herself for drifting off. Anything is possible when you're obliviously sleeping.

Shivering and still woozy, Hera had just been running through the list of places Kanan was likely to hole up, as she descended to the unnaturally silent engine room, but apparently she wouldn't have to search them. She spun around and slid open the spare storage room door and dropped to Kanan's side. He was twitching and muttering to someone in his dreamscape. He jerked at her touch. Keeping as much safe distance as she could, Hera gently pulled away the blanket he'd curled up in, causing him to shudder and turn away from her, further curling in on himself.

"Kanan?" She whispered. " _Kanan_." She squeezed his shoulder which was damp with cold sweat. She decided not to shake him or shout this time, as it had so badly startled him before.

"H-Hera?" He shuddered awake.

"I'm here." Hera took his shaking hand and pressed the palm to the side of her face. "I'm right here."

After a moment's hesitation, Kanan seemed to confirm that he was in fact, awake, and not trapped in a different part of a dream. He rubbed his thumb over her cheek and removed his hand when he'd brushed her nose.

He sighed deeply, then leaned back against the closet wall. Hera sat down next to him, and draped the blanket over both of them. Kanan was still shivering, as he said, "I was trying to find us help. Other than the Empire."

"What? What, with the Force?"

"Yeah. I was trying to see if I could sense someone close enough to pick up our distress signal, then influence them to look for it."

"Is—is that even possible?" Hera was incredulous.

"No idea."

"Well anything's worth a shot at this point, I suppose." Hera gently shifted sideways until their shoulders and hips were touching, trying to force a little warmth into him. "It didn't work, did it? You were having a nightmare."

"I dunno if it worked or not, though I doubt it... I'm not sure if it was a nightmare or a vision." Kanan hesitated, thinking. "I saw Kaller again and Maul, and some of that. But then there was this little Mando craft trying to run a blockade. It almost didn't make it...I'm not sure if it did make it actually," he said, remembering the blue tracking missile that had fired just before Hera had woken him. "I think it was over Jedha."

Hera listened, her mind working though it was a vague set of information to try and make anything with.

"It wasn't Sabine, was it?"

"I don't know." He replied, and they lapsed into silence.

As Kanan's breathing evened out and his shaking ceased, Hera said with badly concealed reluctance, "I should probably see what repairs I can make to the computer terminal. It was smoking by the time we jumped to Hyperspace." She meant it. She'd hoped she wouldn't be able to think of something to do. But there was always something.

Kanan replied, "You know, I had this brilliant theory that if we stayed here long enough, our body heat would warm this closet up to a reasonable temperature."

Hera laughed a little. The first time she'd laughed at anything in days. "I suppose Rex can handle it." He certainly could, but Hera still fought with herself; it was her ship, her responsibility.

"Hera." Kanan shifted. His eyes might have met hers, but it was so dark that Hera was as blind as he was. "Please stay."

His voice had changed. It always did when he said her name. No one else said her name like that. But beneath the word his tone had gone from wry to imploring. Any argument Hera's mind began to form vanished. Kanan needed her right now.

Without another word, Hera leaned into Kanan's chest as he put his arm around her shoulders and Lekku. She crossed her legs over his, and nestled her head against his neck and shoulder, his warm breath brushing her face as he rested his head upon hers. Gradually Kanan's warmth sunk into her, and the tension left both of their bodies. He became the reassuring presence she hadn't let him be for some time. How long had it been since they'd just sat together? Just been warm together? Hera didn't remember. As she drifted off, she thought he mumbled something against her forehead. Some three words she was now too far away to return.


End file.
